A dispute between a contractor and a homeowner escalated into an incident that brought Redondo Beach police and firefighters to the home and resulted in a street closure Wednesday afternoon after the contractor climbed onto the roof and threatened to jump.
Multiple police officers and firefighters, along with a mediator, were at the scene in the 1900 block of Gates Avenue, and officers closed the street between Aviation Boulevard and Blossom Lane in North Redondo Beach.
According to a witness who did not want her name used, the homeowner paid the contractor $2,000 to do repairs on the roof of one of the houses; however, the repairs did not hold and a "gaping hole" remained in the ceiling.
The contractor came by the home unannounced Wednesday morning and demanded an additional $2,800 to complete the repairs, the witness said, and the homeowner fired him. He left in his truck, but returned later and began pounding on the home's walls.
The contractor also took out his ladder and climbed onto the roof of the home, where he began pounding at it with something other than his hands, the witness said. Police arrived and escorted the homeowner out of sight.
A mediator offered the contractor $2,800 to come down from the roof, and he obliged; however, it was not immediately clear how he came down or where the money came from.
Once he was safe on the ground, paramedics took the contractor to a nearby hospital for observation.
